NHL, players take collaborative approach in bid to resumeVideo
Collaboration or bust. Given the gravity of the new coronavirus pandemic and the abrupt decision to place the NHL season on pause in March, it didn’t take commissioner Gary Bettman and union chief Don Fehr long to realize they were going to have to work together if play was to...
Lindy Ruff hired as Devils coach, Tom Fitzgerald stays on as GMVideo
Lindy Ruff impressed the New Jersey Devils with his experience from decades of coaching. Tom Fitzgerald wowed ownership with his moves in a few short months as general manager. The Devils on Thursday hired Ruff as coach and removed Fitzgerald’s interim tag to give him the full-time GM job. Ruff,...
First Call: Gerrit Cole’s pandemic problem, NHL TV schedule, robot fans, no Cleveland for Clowney
Thursday’s “First Call” features a pandemic problem for Gerrit Cole. Might we see robot fans at games? The potential rebooted NHL television schedule is interesting. And the Cleveland Browns appear to be out when it comes to Jadeveon Clowney. Covid conundrum for Cole Former Pirate Gerrit Cole made a simulated...
NHL, players agree on return-to-play protocolsVideo
The NHL and NHL Players’ Association agreed Sunday on protocols to resume the season, a major step toward the return of hockey this summer. Deputy commissioner Bill Daly told the Associated Press there was an agreement on protocols for training camps and games, and the sides are still negotiating an...
Madden Monday: Odd coverage of Ben Roethlisberger’s addictions; defending NHL draft lottery
When Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger admitted addictions to alcohol and pornography last week, it took a long time for that story to gain traction. Particularly on a local level. I wrote a column immediately after I found out about the news. But I found coverage of Roethlisberger’s mea culpa to...
After weird NHL Draft Lottery, losers of 1st-round playoff series in running for top pickVideo
Alexis Lafreniere was supposed to walk on stage Friday night in Montreal as the top pick in the NHL Draft. After the covid-19 pandemic paused the hockey season and postponed that possibility, Lafreniere was supposed to find out Friday night where he would be going when the league held its...
Rangers’ Artemi Panarin suggests NHL players shouldn’t report without escrow reform
NEW YORK — NHL MVP candidate Artemi Panarin said Thursday he has concerns about the health and safety of players if the season resumes and about finances beyond that. The New York Rangers winger posted a statement on Twitter saying he’s worried about the “long-term prosperity of the NHL.” His...
Red Wings have shot to win NHL lottery, draft Alexis LafreniereVideo
The once-proud Detroit Red Wings hope to win the NHL draft lottery, giving them a shot to select Canadian Alexis Lafreniere. Detroit desperately needs a boost after easily being the worst team in the league during the pandemic-shortened season that was put on ice in March. Lafreniere, an 18-year-old winger,...
Madden Monday: ‘Steelers making the playoffs this year is far from a sure thing’
Well, we’ve made it to triple digits. We are now beyond 100 days since major American team sports shut down. We’re at 103 now. So if you think it’s easy to do this job without melding the coronavirus and its surrounding society-wide quagmire into the mix, you are insane. During...
5 Tampa Bay Lightning employees test positive for covid-19Video
The Tampa Bay Lightning closed their facilities Thursday after five team employees tested positive for the coronavirus, a person with knowledge of the situation told the Associated Press. The person spoke to the AP on Friday on the condition of anonymity because the NHL and the team are not announcing...
Canada approves plan to play hockey in country amid pandemic
Canada has approved the NHL’s return-to-play proposal that could lead to one or more cities north of the border serving as host sites for the league’s 24-team playoff format. Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland announced Friday that the nation’s top public health officer, and health officials in Alberta, British Columbia...
Oilers have Hart? Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl among NHL MVP candidatesVideo
The Edmonton Oilers’ resurgence placed Connor McDavid back in the NHL MVP conversation, along with teammate Leon Draisaitl. Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon and Boston’s David Pastrnak made their case, too, during a pandemic-shortened season. And don’t forget Artemi Panarin, a late entry in the discussion after the New York Rangers finished...
Puck woes: NHL’s bottom line facing short-term blow
With so much uncertainty, Larry Quinn can’t predict just how severe the NHL’s financial losses might be due to the coronavirus pandemic. That doesn’t stop the former Buffalo Sabres managing partner from providing a bleak assessment, at least for the short term. “They’ve got big challenges ahead,” Quinn said. “And...
No full shields for players; NHL talking off-ice protection
NHL players won’t be expected to wear full face shields if games resume this summer, though there could be plenty of covered faces around them. Equipment changes have not been a focus of return-to-play negotiations between the league and players’ union, according to a person with knowledge of those talks....
Sabres change course, fire GM Jason Botterill after 3 seasons
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Buffalo Sabres owners Terry and Kim Pegula reversed course by firing general manager Jason Botterill on Tuesday as part of a drastic cost-cutting purge of front-office staff and scouts on a team preparing to sit idle for what could be the remainder of the calendar year. The...
First Call: Lamar Jackson vs. a jet ski, NHL hub city sleeper, Pirates’ Jameson Taillon lashes out
Tuesday’s “First Call” looks at Lamar Jackson’s sand football/jet ski mishap. Belief in the Browns. And an update on the NHL hub city discussion. This must’ve gone over big in Baltimore How quickly do you think John Harbaugh passed out after watching this? First of all, it’s star quarterback Lamar...
‘Long overdue’: White NHL players find their voice on racism
Brian Boyle is a 35-year-old grizzled veteran of 13 NHL seasons who grew up outside Boston. After seeing video of George Floyd’s death, Boyle wanted to say something. The Florida Panthers forward, though, wasn’t sure how and didn’t want it to come off the wrong way. He wound up calling...
Taking over a college hockey program during a pandemic … and other fun hobbies
It’s your first college head coaching job. It’s a small school. It’s Division III men’s hockey. You aren’t the biggest program in your own state, or your own city. The team is 14-58-6 in its first three seasons. And you’ve signed on during a pandemic. So, you’ve been on the...
NHL playoff length and reseeding. Right moves? Or bad decisions?
The National Hockey League is continuing to inch back toward playing. The Penguins are supposed to resume small-group workout sessions at the UPMC Lemieux Performance Complex in Cranberry on Tuesday. This is a lightning pace toward getting back to action compared to Major League Baseball. But things are crawling along...
Madden Monday: How MLB and NHL are getting in their own way, Steelers talk
After a week off, the “Madden Monday” podcast is back. Mark Madden and Tim Benz take a long look at attempts to reboot the NHL and MLB seasons. Why are both leagues constantly getting in their own way? From a hockey perspective, the issue seems to be how long things...
NHL reveals further details for potential postseasonVideo
The NHL revealed Thursday a few more details of its return to play plan for a postseason that would take place in summer. • While the qualifying round to formally enter the playoffs will involve best-of-five series, all four rounds of the actual playoffs will be best-of-seven series. When the...
NHL post-quarantine: Recapturing team chemistry a challengeVideo
Claude Giroux’s Philadelphia Flyers were the hottest team in the NHL when hockey still was being played. That was more than two months ago and their next game could be two more months away. He can’t predict how things might go if the season resumes. “I don’t know,” Giroux said....
NHL recognizes Presidents’ Trophy, scoring title and goaltending award winnersVideo
The timetable remains fluid for the NHL’s return to play, but the league Thursday reaffirmed that the regular season is over when it announced winners of three trophies that are automatically awarded based on the regular-season performance of teams or individuals. The Boston Bruins were recognized in all three categories....
NHL monitoring situation before choosing where to play gamesVideo
Concerns about Canadian coronavirus restrictions could push hockey south of the 49th parallel into the U.S. this summer. Seven of the 10 locations the NHL has zeroed in on to hold playoff games if it resumes are American cities not restricted by Canada’s 14-day mandatory quarantine upon arrival. As 24...
Mark Madden on ‘superficial’ Steelers, ‘cowardly’ Pitt, ‘creep’ Vince McMahon
This week’s “Madden Monday” podcast comes at you a day later than normal because of the Memorial Day weekend. But that just gives us more content to unearth. We start with Mark’s column over the weekend. It examines the Steelers’ locker room culture. Mark believes it has become too superficial....
